8 Days at the Kingdom: (8 Nothing Good on TV)
by richonnelandfill
Summary: 50 Reasons to Have Sex Fic challenge by richonnejustdesserts. Rick and Michonne as well as several members of The Family are taking a short stay at the Kingdom for King Ezekiel's birthday; however due to some pesky intruders their weekend stay is elongated to eight days.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: My submission for the 50 Reason to Have Sex Challenge. This one idea turned into a multi chapter fic so bare with me as we journey through my first post-as-I-go fic lol. And as always a big thank you to my beta wonderingwoman.**

Rick's tongue fervently wrestled with Michonne's, causing her to moan into his mouth. A chaste kiss outside of the car had ignited an energetic tonsil hockey match as they stood outside of the Kingdom's gates waiting to be greeted. Michonne consumed him, sucking and pulling with need at Rick's swollen bottom lip. Her fingers were tucked discreetly at the nape of his neck, hidden in his mass of curls, while Rick was unconcerned about his hand cupping her butt in plain sight.

Carol cleared her voice, a little louder this time, hoping to get their attention. Rick and Michonne immediately broke apart wiping at their lips, blushing that they were caught in a moment of intimacy. "Well good morning lovebirds." Carol's bright grin competed with the sunlight and clear morning that shone above the Kingdom.

"Hey Carol," Rick moved to give her a hug, Michonne followed closely with her own.

"How've you been?" Michonne asked, not having spoken to Carol since she had moved from Alexandria.

"Busy. But probably not as busy as you two newlyweds," Carol teased. Making Rick squirm had once been a favorite past time.

"It's been four months. Are we still considered newlyweds?" Michonne looked back and forth between Carol and Rick as they began walking toward the Kingdom's main hall.

"With the way you two act, someone would have thought that you were still on your honeymoon." Rick chuckled and fell a step behind Carol to reach his hand in Michonne's back pocket. He placed a light kiss at her temple.

"Oh and speaking of honeymoon, you two may want to have a little talk with Carl." Carol's eyebrow quirked.

A vein immediately pulsed at the side of Rick's head. "Carol what'd he do?" He pinched the bridge of his nose, his eyes strained closed.

"Morgan found him in the garden with Enid, which isn't really a place for children after dark. But I'll let him tell you the rest," she quipped.

The three made it past the entryway of the Grand Hall. For a former school, King Ezekiel had really put a nice touch to it. The walls were covered with giant paintings and garnished with gaudy flower arrangements that sat in large vases. Carol held the door for them to enter the large cafeteria, which was now used as the Grand Dining Hall. As Rick and Michonne quickly learned, everything at the Kingdom was grand.

"The King will now see you," Carol said.

"Really Carol, I've never heard you call him king?" Rick raised an eyebrow while Michonne smirked at her.

Carol rolled her eyes, "Will you two shut up and smile?"

King Ezekiel sat at the head of one of the tables, Shiva resting nearby on her leash. The rest of their family was already moving around the room, sitting with plates of food.

King Ezekiel strode towards the pair. "Ahh, Rick Grimes and his lady Michonne, how glad I am to see you two."

"We appreciate the invitation." Rick said, shaking Ezekiel's hand.

"Well of course, your family is always welcome at The Kingdom. We will presumably start our meeting in the next fifteen minutes, so please, visit the tables for our buffet and get reacquainted with everyone."

Rick and Michonne broke away from one another, giving greetings to their friends and family. Sasha, Maggie, Glenn, and Morgan were already seated at the main table along with some of Ezekiel's most trusted people. Carl and Enid came around the corner laughing, yet they moved a little further apart at the sight of his father.

Enid picked up her pace and scurried past Rick, "Hey Mr. Grimes," she said with her head bowed towards the ground.

Carl lagged behind with a cautious, "Hey dad."

"Hey Carl. You know Carol already talked to me."

"Dad we weren't doing anything." Carl was quite exasperated with how everyone reported his every move to his father as if he were Judith's age.

"Doesn't sound that way. I leave you up here for one week and you're already getting into trouble." Rick did not even attempt to hide his deepening scowl.

"Oh, so its okay for you and mom to do, but not me and Enid? Word travels fast." Carl immediately found humor in his father's concern.

"Your mom and I are adults Carl." He whispered, hoping that no one else caught him in this flustering moment. It ticked him off even more that his son found it amusing. He prayed to God that his son and Enid weren't doing the same things he and Michonne were.

"Dad this argument doesn't work anymore, me and Enid are both eighteen." Carl relaxed, confident in his stance.

"I know that. I know that. It's just that people still see you as the little kid they first met. It takes people a while to transition into thinking of you as an adult."

"People or you dad?"

"I'm trying, I just wasn't prepared for this." Rick sighed, not knowing how to proceed.

"Just be cool dad. At least I'm not running around murdering people. That's your job." He smirked.

"Carl." Rick pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I'm just kidding dad . . . well half-way." He shrugged before hearing his favorite person coming behind him.

"Carl, did you think you were going to come in here and not give me a hug?" Michonne reached out to give Carl a warm embrace. She hated to admit that she missed having him conveniently in the next room.

As everyone got seated, Ezekiel carried forward with the day's agenda. The lunch meeting they were having was closed to the other leaders and chairmen of Alexandria, Hilltop, and the Kingdom. Ezekiel figured it would be a great time to convene and discuss the progress of their communities as well as their future partnerships. The remaining members of the communities were invited to come the following day to spend the weekend at the Kingdom for Ezekiel's birthday. He had gone around calling the ordeal, "A Celebration of Life", in which he promised plenty of food, music, and dancing.

After the meeting, Morgan led Rick and Michonne through the sleeping quarters to their assigned room.

"King Ezekiel wanted to assure you two that you had the next best room after his. There's a king size mattress, a large dresser, with clothing provided for you. Your room also has a large shower, and any amenities you can think of. If you need anything else, my room is the last one down the hall."

"Thanks Morgan," Rick said as he allowed Michonne to take the first step into their temporary abode.

Michonne and Rick walked around, inspecting the room.

"This is pretty nice," Rick said, rubbing his hand across the polished oak dresser.

"I know, and this bed is up high. Just how I like it." Michonne hopped onto the bed and sprawled out on the beautifully designed covers that seemed out of place in this new world, the type you would only find in a master suite of an expensive resort. There had to be about five layers of sheets and more pillows than they would ever need.

Rick kept walking around running his hands along the perimeter of the room. "Why is this in here?" He rubbed the door of the polished TV cabinet.

"Probably for decoration. You know Ezekiel likes anything that looks lavish. If his men found gold-plated tampons I'm sure they'd be somewhere in the room too."

"What do you want to do tonight?" Rick asked coming around the corner of the bed and resting his hands at Michonne's hips.

With the big celebration the next night, King Ezekiel allowed his early guests the opportunity to explore the Kingdom at their leisure. His inhabitants would need the night and the next morning to decorate for the lavish occasion.

"After that big lunch I'm kind of tired. Can we stay in the room?"

"What do you want to do? There's nothing good on TV," Rick joked, gesturing towards the black screen.

She sat up and toyed with his shirt collar, a smile crept upon her face. "I don't need a TV for entertainment. Maybe we could try out that shower. It looks nice and very relaxing."

"Oh yeah?" Rick teased.

"Yeah," she nodded and began slowly unbuttoning his shirt. She was temporarily interrupted as he peeled hers off and threw it in a corner of the room. They both took their time as he reached back to grab her foot, taking the boots and socks off her dainty feet. With his shirt off, she changed her focus to his waist, unbuckling his gun belt and working to unbutton his pants.

She captured his lips between hers, moaning with delight. Suddenly Rick pulled back, his eyebrows knitted in a look of concern. "Maybe I should go check on Carl."

"We already saw him this morning." She nipped at his lips as they continued to move.

"I know babe, but I didn't get to talk to him about Enid." Michonne, still under the lustful spell, switched to massaging his back and arms.

"Baby, he's an adult. Don't you trust him to be careful?" Her soft brown eyes locked onto his bright blue ones.

"I can barely trust myself to be careful." Rick briefly broke from his state of worry, giving Michonne a small smile before taking her wrist to kiss.

Michonne giggled and locked her legs tighter around Rick's waist. "Okay, we'll talk to him sometime this weekend, but right now I need you focused on me."

He kissed her in agreement, before cupping her bottom and carrying her to the bathroom. Once inside, he turned on the shower, and continued stripping her remaining clothes off. He slid back the clear shower door and stepped inside. Warm water streamed down from several locations of the shower's ceiling.

They had thought simply having a shower at home was a luxury but this was beyond luxurious. Michonne followed after him, placing herself behind him and sucking on his neck as she ran her hands down his tight abdominals. He sighed and lightly placed his hands over her arms as they traveled down to his hard dick. She didn't have to see his face to know that his left brow lifted in the way it always did when she surprised him with her touch. She continued to rhythmically stroke his length until he forced her to turn around.

Not being able to resist, he walked her from behind to the other side of the shower and demanded in a low husky voice, "Assume the position."

She immediately felt herself get wet. "Yes officer." She bit her lip all the while complying to Rick as he nudged her legs apart with his own.

"I need to search you." He pressed his body onto hers, running his hands down her arms, around her waist, back up to grab her breasts, and then back down again past her hips, down her calves, stopping once he was eye-level with her dripping center.

"Bend forward." Rick demanded, sending a chill down Michonne's spine.

Following orders, she pressed her hands and face against the cold shower wall, while warm water ran down her arched back. She held her breath in anticipation.

He smirked, having her right where he wanted her. Michonne was a headstrong woman that took charge without thinking, yet she was putty in his hands whenever he took control of her in private.

Rick plunged two fingers into her soft center, stroking generously as her moans echoed through the shower. After warming her up, he replaced his fingers with his hungry mouth. He licked and sucked at her opening, one hand gripping her ass, the other kneading her breast.

"Hold still," he warned her between licks. All she could do was continue to pant, as she was right on the edge of release.

"Rick. Rick. Oh my god." Her legs trembled as she came. He lapped up her juices, completely aroused by her taste. He stood up and nibbled at her ear. "You're so damn sexy. Come here."

He grabbed her hand as she stalked towards him, her knees feeling as unsteady as a newborn deer. When she reached him, her free hand gripped at the nape of his neck wantonly thanking him with a deep kiss. He knew he couldn't stop himself once she started sucking on his tongue. He lifted her up by her thighs and pressed her back against the wall, swiftly entering her warm center.

Her moans grew even louder as he groaned, pumping endlessly in and out of her. She held onto his neck with all her might, she was sure this was going to be the way she died. Her eyes rolled back, hypnotized by the sound of their wet skin slapping together. Rick's legs began to feel weak as his impending explosion came to a build. He gripped her thighs tighter as he picked up speed.

Michonne's mouth fell ajar as a soft cry escaped her throat. Her walls clenched, setting forth Rick's release of his hot seed inside her. One after another he placed her feet back down, their breaths slowing down to their normal pace.

After thoroughly washing each other's bodies, the two climbed into their new bed. It didn't matter that the sun had barely gone down, a full night's rest was rare for Rick and Michonne and they were going to take full advantage of their mini vacation at the Kingdom.

 **A/N: Next we'll see how the Kingdom is preparing for the birthday celebration.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So I know some of you voiced your opinion on Tumblr on whether you wanted to see Dasha or Sabraham and I was surprised to see the responses. So check out the result. I also had to say, y'all concern over Carl had me cracking up. He was literally supposed to be a minor character, but don't worry Carl will appear at soon. As always, leave a review :)**

Day 2

 _Knock, knock, knock._ Michonne groaned at the annoyance coming from the other side of the door. She reluctantly peeled herself from her comfortable spot on Rick's chest, her movements slowly stirring him awake.

"Just a second!" Michonne yelled rummaging through their closet to find a silk purple robe to cover her naked body.

"We have a schedule to follow my dear." That voice was undeniably Carol's.

"Rick! Rick!" Michonne tried to whisper, all the while racing around the room, "Cover yourself."

He grumbled, pulling the sheets up past his bare waist. Their sleep had been so good that he was still groggy, barely able to open his eyes.

Michonne looked back and rolled her own before sticking her body in front of the cracked door. "Hey Carol, I completely forgot about today's schedule. What is it we're supposed to be doing this morning?"

"I am taking you and the girls shopping in town," said Carol. Although Michonne blocked their bedroom entrance, Carol could still see the traces of their eventful evening: pillows thrown onto the floor, covers hanging off the bed, and a barely clothed Rick.

Michonne's eyebrows quirked slightly in surprise. "I haven't heard the term shopping in a long time. But wait, why are we going shopping if there's already clothes in the room?"

"The king is very adamant on letting people make their own choices, but since he already picked everyone's sleeping quarters, he figured he should let everyone choose what they wear tonight. I sent Sasha down here about a half hour ago but you didn't answer."

"Sorry." Michonne blushed. She was positive that Sasha had come by while she was getting her morning wake-up call from Rick. Her moans were probably louder than any knocks Sasha could muster.

"It's fine. Just meet us down by the front gates in five minutes. Swing past the great hall if you want something to eat." Carol stepped on her tippy toes to look over Michonne at Rick lying in the bed, "You too princess, Morgan should be coming down here any minute to come fetch you."

"Carol, has anyone told you you're a life saver?" Rick said lazily as he propped himself up on his elbow.

"Eh, just some goofy sheriff this one time." She turned on her heel and headed down the hallway.

Michonne closed the door and turned back to Rick, who was more alert now. "I guess I won't see you for a couple hours." She playfully pouted, stepping closer to Rick's legs dangling from the edge of the bed.

"Don't give me that, this was your plan all along. You came up here to get away from me and have a hen-fest with your girlfriends," he chuckled, pulling the ends of her robe's belt apart. The smooth fabric fell to expose her bare front. "No it wasn't," she giggled, tickled by the stubble of his beard rubbing against her throat as he kissed her.

"Michonne Grimes you don't fool me for one second." He held onto her waist as she swayed between his legs. "You came in here the other night batting your little eyelashes, rubbing all on me, trying to get some because you knew I wasn't going to see you again until it was time for us to leave."

Her eyes clenched shut as a stream of high-pitched giggles came from her mouth. "Richard Grimes you are not my only friend. I really miss not having Maggie, Sasha, and Carol at Alexandria. The only girl time I get at home is with Judith."

"I know, I'm just giving you a hard time." He looked across the room at the gold chrome clock hanging on the wall. "You should really get dressed. Carol is expecting you in about two minutes and you know she runs a tight ship."

Michonne scoffed, "I'm not the one that takes forever to get ready. That's you sir, primping your curls in the mirror and whatnot."

"Yeah, all for you to turn around and mess them up." She slapped his arm and ventured off to find a fresh set of clothes, but before she was out of reach Rick slapped her on the ass. She looked back at him and smirked. "This is usually why we're late," Michonne said.

As predicted, a few minutes after Michonne left Morgan came knocking on his door. Rick rushed to get dressed and followed Morgan through the Kingdom's courtyard.

"Sorry for keeping you guys waiting," said Rick, falling into step with his pal.

"Oh it's no problem. You weren't the only one still in bed. I don't think Daryl's much of a morning person. He wouldn't budge for anyone, 'cept Carol."

"Sounds about right," Rick nodded, well aware that Daryl and Carol had an odd relationship. They were more than friends, but they certainly weren't lovers. "Did Carl get up?" Rick asked hoping to get his talk with his son.

"Oh, Carl already got his attire the day he got here, I don't think he'll be joining us," said Morgan.

Rick and Morgan had to watch their step as the courtyard was bustling with its inhabitants moving large plants, carrying reams of fabric, and wheeling in tables and chairs. Several ladders were propped up, allowing people to hang flowers outside buildings near the Grand Hall. The two reached the gate where Glenn, Daryl, and Abe stood eating fresh blueberry bagels.

Rick did not notice Jerry standing right outside the gate on guard duty. "Ah, my man Rick Grimes! How you doing today sir?" Jerry beamed.

"Great Jerry, what do you have there?" The large man had flaky crumbs falling down his thick beard, chewing away at whatever was in his mouth. Jerry smiled brightly and walked closer to him and whispered, "Peach cobbler. Carol let me have some of her practice batch. There should be more at dinner."

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." Rick said, patting him on the back.

"Rick, will you quit your yapping and come on!" Abraham nodded towards the line-up of cars that Morgan was sifting through.

"You guys are so tense, we're just shopping," said Glenn.

"I hate shopping," Daryl complained taking a bite of his bagel.

"You hate everything," Rick said.

Morgan finally came to a decision. "Jerry we're going to take the van. Could you get me the key?"

"No problem Morgan."

Morgan brought the van around front and the men piled in. They headed about ten miles up the road to a shop that was surrounded by abandoned businesses, their glass front windows were shattered and shelves were knocked over and rummaged through. However the shop Morgan pulled up in front of looked untouched.

"What kind of monkey shit's going on 'round here? Sure clothing wouldn't be the first thing to go, but this building looks damn near brand new," said Abe.

"Oh, we use this store often. Anytime there's a celebration people come out here and grab things. Ezekiel ordered for it to be cleaned out and fixed up a long time ago," Morgan informed them.

The four followed Morgan inside and began perusing through the men's racks. Row of clothing hangers held long coats, cloaks, vests, and slacks over the old wooden floor.

Daryl tried on a long black coat that fell past his knees, whipping its tail through the air in front of a tall mirror. "This ain't so bad," he said checking his appearance.

Glenn walked over to the mirror Daryl was standing in. "I know, I might have to keep this vest. Herschel's watch goes perfectly with this." Glenn pulled out the worn pocket watch, clipping it to the light grey pants that matched his ascot. When he looked up he could see Rick floundering in front of a shelf of hats. He called out to him, "Rick we've been in here 20 minutes and the only thing you've tried on is a hat."

Caught in an apprehensive state, he slightly jumped. "I don't know how to shop. Michonne just comes home and hangs up new clothes she finds for me in our closet. I know she's going to look good, so I don't want to embarrass her. Glenn, Morgan, help me."

"I guess I'm just chopped liver over here." Daryl said, reaching for a black walking cane.

Before they could shuffle through the racks, Abraham burst through one of the dressing room curtains. "Now this is how you make an entrance boys!"

"Dude, where did you find that?" Glenn laughed.

"The big and manly section," Abraham boasted, puffing out his chest in front of the mirror. "I couldn't squeeze my left nut into those tiny pants, so I opted for something unique."

Morgan chuckled, "Abraham that's a mon-"

Rick interjected, "Morgan, just let the man have his outfit. Sasha is going to hate us all, but it's completely worth it."

* * *

After the girls returned from their own shopping trip they met in the women's parlor; a room that had to have been a large classroom once upon a time. The room now had a number of vanities placed around it, with large standing mirrors, and a plethora of beauty products. Maggie put the finishing touches on Michonne's make-up. The gold and black tones in the shadow were a great match for her wine-colored dress.

"Ricks tongue is going to be on the floor when he sees you," Maggie smiled, her long blue sleeves were rolled up so as to not smear Michonne's make-up.

"More than usual? I didn't know that was possible?" Carol smirked, criss-crossing the ties of her corset on her pink gown.

"We are not that bad you guys." Michonne laughed.

"You two are always all over each other, yet I'm the one that's pregnant," said Sasha, who was doing the exact opposite of Carol. She had to remove the ties of her corset because her four month baby bump wouldn't allow it.

"Well because you and Abe aren't all over each other in public, which leads me to believe you two are all over each other at home." Carol raised her eyebrows.

They all laughed until a knock came at the door. "Carol?" The voice was recognizable as Ben, the eager young knight King Ezekiel had taken under his wing he had been ordered to constantly keep an eye on Carol's whereabouts.

Carol sighed, "Come in Ben, we're all dressed."

In walked a young man, no older than twenty-five. He had wavy blond hair and fidgeted where he stood, as if he had never seen a group of gorgeous women before.

"Benjamin this is Michonne, Maggie and Sasha. What do you need?"

"Oh uh, I have a note for you. It's from the king himself."

"Just set it down on the table, thank you." Carol expected him to walk away yet, he stood planted. "Set it down and leave." Her eyes got big.

Ben wrung his fingers. "Uh, King Ezekiel asked that I made sure you read it."

Carol drew a breath and rolled her eyes. "Give it here." She held up the card up in front of her face and bounced her head as she quickly read through each word. "Done. Are you satisfied?"

"Yes Carol. I'll let you get back to your night."

"Thank you," she said. Ben quickly slipped back through the door, afraid that he would melt under Carol's harsh stare.

Michonne, Maggie, and Sasha all looked at one another curiously before turning to Carol. "So . . . what did it say?" Maggie questioned.

"Just a thank you note for volunteering to help this weekend," Carol answered grimly, continuing to dress.

"That looks longer than a simple thank you," said Michonne.

Carol hurriedly flipped the card over on it bare side. "You've all heard him talk, he's quite longwinded."

"Carol, you got something to hide?" Sasha moved in closer, preparing to put the pressure on the solid woman. "This makes me want to know even more."

"Hand it over woman." Maggie demanded with the palm of her hand outstretched. Carol rolled her eyes before reluctantly sliding the card across the dresser in front of her. Maggie dramatically cleared her throat, "My fair maiden Carol, with eyes of periwinkle and lips as soft as its petals. You embolden this old canary to sing, in all my days no one compares to thee. Signed, your king, Ezekiel."

"Well hot damn Carol, what did you do to the man?" Sasha exclaimed, all while struggling to reach down and put on her shoes until Michonne knelt before her and began lacing them up.

Carol finished clasping a necklace around her neck, before looking up at Maggie. "Nothing at all, and why am I on the hot seat all of a sudden? I didn't ask that man to bring me poetry."

Maggie checked her hair one last time in the mirror, "Because it's fun to see you flustered, but don't let Daryl find out, he'll have a cow." Sasha and Michonne snickered, knowing that Maggie's claim was absolutely true.

 **A/N: Next chapter, a continuation of the party. Drinks will be flowing and we finally see what The Garden is all about. And is Ezekiel crushing on Carol?**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry for the wait. Previously Rick and the guys were shopping for Ezekiel's big birthday celebration. Carol received poetry from King Ezekiel and the girls teased her about it. Rick still hasn't had this talk with Carl. Let's go!**

* * *

Michonne took her time moving the fork around her loaded plate. She and Rick sat to the left of King Ezekiel near the head of the table. Maggie and Glenn sat across from them, with Sasha and Abraham. Michonne worked to hide her smirk as Rick ran his wandering hand atop the velvet material covering her leg underneath the table. Even sitting, her dress swept the floor, yet hung low around her shoulders, creating the cleavage in perfect view from where Rick sat. A rose gold necklace rested splendidly between her twin peaks, her hair swept into an elegant chignon left her long neck exposed.

Michonne didn't have to look at Rick to know his eyes were on her, he was practically drooling. "Down boy," she smirked.

Rick leaned over to whisper in her ear, "You're not making it easy on me. You look amazing."

"Can I at least finish my meal Grimes?" Michonne giggled.

"Only 'cause you asked nicely," he returned.

The Great Hall was filled with the chatter of numerous people dining. Servants came and switched out dishes and poured wine as a group of musicians strummed away on their instruments across the room. Michonne could hear Sasha bickering with Abe from across the table.

Sasha's bronze skin was complimented by the olive green, floor-length dress she had on, her hair mostly pulled back in a simple chignon, with curly strands falling in front. "Babe, I still don't understand how you ended up in a monk's frock. You need to seriously fire your friends. Why would they let you go out looking like this?"

"My darling, I am comfortable and that's all that matters." Abe said, throwing back a large mug of beer. Michonne giggled, all his outfit was missing was a giant cross and a bible in his hand. Thank goodness he didn't have it, he had already turned quite a few heads moments earlier when he came in dressed like that with the mouth of a sailor.

Carol sat off to the side of King Ezekiel. She seemed on edge, as if she was under watch, yet Ezekiel did not seem to notice as he boisterously told stories and jokes hoping to entertain her. Maggie and Glenn eagerly joined in to listen, finding him to be an interesting character to say the least.

Michonne frowned, turning to whisper to Rick. "Babe, do you know anything about what's going on with Ezekiel and Carol?"

"Hmm?" He paused cutting his steak. "No, I haven't heard anything. What's wrong?"

"I think Ezekiel has a thing for Carol." She tilted her head in their direction.

Rick glanced at the pair before asking, "What makes you think that?"

"Ezekiel had a poem sent to Carol while we were getting dressed and just look at him now. He's acting like a peacock with his tail feathers all fluffed out. I don't think know if she's into him though."

"Carol's a big girl, she can handle him, but I'll keep an eye on him just in case." Michonne nodded, feeling a little better about the situation. Rick continued, "You know, I haven't got to catch Carl all day. I'm having the talk with him tonight."

"Rick, I think it's a little too late for the birds and the bees." She smirked.

"I know. I just want him to be responsible and not having sex with Enid because she is the only girl around his age. He shouldn't be having sex unless he loves her, and even then he needs to be careful."

"I think you raised an intelligent young man, but I don't think it hurts to communicate that to him." Michonne tucked a loose curl behind Rick's ear.

"I'm going to go grab him now before it gets too late, but I'll come back to find you. Save me a dance." He kissed her on the temple before slipping away from the table.

She unashamedly watched her husband walk away. His hands had been all over her under the table, yet now she could not wait to get her hands all over him. He was absolutely enticing is his red and black vest, embroidered with a floral print that balanced the design of her dress. He wore a black long sleeve shirt underneath and black slacks. She was so used to seeing his stupid worn out black jeans all the time, the fitted pair of slacks he had on excited her and made it easier to see everything down below.

When he was out of view, Michonne went back to slicing the meat and vegetables upon her plate. A servant came by to take Rick's vacated dining ware, causing Michonne to look up. In that moment she somehow caught eyes with Carol. Carol tapped Ezekiel on the hand, interrupting him in the middle of one of his jovial stories to excuse herself from the table. She walked over and lightly placed her hand on Michonne's shoulder.

"Come with me," the older woman instructed. Michonne was puzzled, yet she had the utmost trust in Carol in any given situation. The two glided past the couples on the dance floor, moved past the loud music of the band, and entered a small secluded hallway.

"What's going on?" Michonne questioned.

Carol looked around their surroundings before speaking, "I need to know how Daryl's doing." Her tone was completely serious.

Michonne searched the woman's face. "In what way? I mean he's finally taking showers and he's eating more table food as opposed to squirrels, but what exactly do you mean?"

Carol sighed. "If you and the girls suspect something is going on with the Kin-" she stopped herself, remembering how Rick chided her earlier, "Ezekiel and me, then I'm sure Daryl does too."

" _Is_ there something going on with you and Ezekiel, because I was under the impress-"

"-that's not important. What's important is that Daryl begins to feel comfortable opening up to people again, even if it's just friendships. Michonne, you and I both know he changed after Beth's death. He closed himself off and was barely making full sentences at one point. It's bad enough that I moved to the Kingdom . . . I don't want him to feel alone."

Michonne paused to consider Carol's words. Everyone in the family had known that Daryl had fallen into an unhealthy state of despair, yet it was hard to help him when everyone else was going through their own grief as well. When they were out on the road it was bad news after bad news. Sasha too had fallen far off the deep end but Abraham brought her back. Michonne brought Rick back. Maggie and Glenn always had each other.

All of a sudden a couple stumbled past them with goblets of wine in their hands, possibly lost on their way out of the dining hall. As the strangers left Michonne replied, "I don't think any of us could begin to explain the bond you have with Daryl and I think the move was hard for him at first, but I honestly believe he's doing okay. He's smiling more, he's around the house more. I can see the difference. However, if something _is_ going on with you and Ezekiel you should really take Maggie's advice and tell Daryl because he'll be hurt. Even if he gets new friends or finds a partner, you'll still be the closest person he has."

Carol simply nodded. She knew what she had to do.

"Carl," Rick called out, catching his son goofily dancing with Enid in the center of the dance floor.

Carl did not immediately hear him, so Enid tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey dad, what's up?"

"Hey Carl. Enid I'm going to borrow him for a second if that's okay."

"Yea, sure," she shrugged. "Carl, I'll just hang out over here."

"Why do I feel like this is going to be the prom night talk I never had?" Carl joked, leaning on the tall bannister next to them.

Rick chuckled and scratched his head. "Mm, it's something like that. Look, I know you know the basics. Like Michonne says all the time, you're a smart kid. I wanted to warn you, once you get . . . intimate with someone, things will change. It's not a good nor bad thing, but the relationship will change and you have a responsibility to treat her with the utmost respect."

"I know dad," Carl nodded, "believe it or not we haven't done that yet. She wants to wait."

"For marriage?" Rick questioned.

Carl smiled and shook his head, "No, for whenever she feels the time is right. It may be the end of the world, quote un-quote but we're in no rush." He ended his statement leisurely smoothing his bangs away from his face.

Rick squinted at his son, "You make this parenting thing too easy. I'm convinced Judith is going to give me a stroke before she gets to be your age."

 _Day 3 -around midnight-_

Rick walked away from the dance floor scanning the room for his wife. The large dining table was completely cleared and removed from the room, yet it was easy to find Michonne in the crowd, her heavenly round behind switching as she moved down the refreshments table popping a cube of cheese in her mouth. She turned around, catching Rick staring at her from afar, and she chuckled, having been caught stuffing her mouth like a chipmunk. She turned her back towards him to quickly wipe at the corners of her mouth and smooth over her hair as he coolly sauntered towards her. _Could she be any more adorable?_ Rick thought to himself. Once he reached her he placed his hand on her waist and leaned in to whisper in her ear, "May I have this dance?"

"Yes," she nodded, taking his hand to follow his lead. He confused her once he steered them further away from the stage and into a dim corner of the room.

"What're you up to?" she eyeballed him cautiously from behind.

"Nothing." He was short in his response, struggling to hide a devious smile.

"Then why are you taking me away from the dance floor?"

Content with their location, Rick turned on his heel to face Michonne, grasping her wrist and tugging it around his neck while his other palm ran down the crack of her ass to roughly pull her body against his while he leaned against a nearby wall. "How else am I supposed to get to third base with the hottest girl at the dance?"

Maggie, Sasha, and Carol joked about her and Rick being all over each other, but how could she not with this man doing these sort of things to her? She wasn't even sure what songs were playing or if she and Rick were even moving to the beat, her tongue was back so far down his throat she could have charged him a dental bill. When they stopped to come up for air she rested her head in the crook of his neck. Rick kissed the top of her head and smiled down at her before turning to observe their family around the room.

Morgan acted as security, standing at the back door talking with the young knight Benjamin. Sasha sat in a chair, too pregnant to stand comfortably for long, Abraham was sitting next to her with his head laid on her shoulder. He ever so often would give her light kisses on her neck, their hands overlaid as they rubbed on her protruding belly. Maggie and Glenn were nowhere to be found, probably back in their room working on baby number two. Daryl scoured the last of the refreshment's table, picking up whatever looked edible.

Rick thought his eyes mistook him once he noticed two figures that resembled Carol and Ezekiel holding hands and walking out the back door towards The Garden. The first day at the Kingdom, right after the meeting, King Ezekiel had pulled Rick aside to chit-chat. Amongst expressing the great help that Carl had been that week, Ezekiel hinted to Rick that The Garden was a spot he should absolutely visit with Michonne at some point during their stay.

Rick craned his head towards her ear once more, "Come with me, I wanna show you something." Michonne raised her eyebrow inquisitively, but took his hand anyway.

"Hold on," she released him shortly to grab a goblet with wine from one of the tables.

Rick chuckled, "Good idea."

She held onto his locked arm allowing Rick to lead her out of the hall, into the night air. The grounds were covered in a deep blue film and the stars shown bright above. A cobbled promenade was lined with dim lanterns, to guide its followers.

"This is beautiful Rick." He peered over at his wife, the moonlight shining off of her impeccable skin as she continued to sip wine. Her eyelashes flitted up once she felt Rick's glare.

"What?" She giggled, the intensity of his ice blue eyes causing her to blush.

"You're buzzed already," he chuckled.

"This is around my third cup," she tipped the goblet once again to her lips, enjoying the sweet liquid washing against her tongue. "What's so funny?" Rick had grabbed his chest to reveal a toothy grin because Michonne always got real goofy when she was tipsy.

"Nothing. It's not often I see you under the influence."

"Yea, 'cause I'm usually busy trying to save your ass." She temporarily let go of his arm to slap his butt.

"Is that right?" Rick quirked an eyebrow, swiftly pulling her hips against his and lowering his head to suck and nip at her earlobe. His strong hands snaked down to clutch her ass.

"Rick." She was partially distracted by her own arousal as the wine plus his tongue had her feeling some type of way.

"Hmm?" He hummed in her ear.

"We can't do this right here?"

"Why not?" he rebutted in a low husky voice.

He kept talking to her like that and she was not going to be able to keep her dress down. "What if someone walks by?"

Rick broke away from her, still with a hold on her lower back. "Take a look around, we're practically alone."

Michonne realized the tall bushes surrounding them were thick and freshly trimmed creating a wall of privacy between them and other wanderers. The white wisteria hanging above them grabbed her attention. It was like something out of a fantasy. Trickling water from the large fountain in the center of the courtyard could be heard from where she stood. A wooden crate nearby sat full of cantaloupe, pomegranate, grapes and apples, free for anyone to take. She had noticed the crates of fruit earlier on in the day.

A couple other party goers had migrated to the garden, tucked away in obscure pockets of shrubbery and the shade of fruit trees. Rick watched her explore as he took a seat at the wooden bench near them. Michonne strolled closer to the tree to inspect the authenticity of the plant and was surprised to learn that the oranges hanging from it were indeed real. She had to give it to the Kingdom, she was impressed. Although a lot of things were for show, they were able to sustain fresh produce quite well.

She floated back towards Rick, "Wow, now I can see why Carl took Enid out here. He's quite the romantic, like his dad." She smirked, passing Rick the wine.

Rick snorted, glad that his son had picked up something positive from him. Rick quickly finished off the rest of her drink and set it in the grass at his feet.

Michonne seized the opportunity to roll her dress up past her knees and straddle Rick's waist, newly convinced that no one would see them. Even if they did, she was not going to stop living in the moment. She wanted her husband right then and there.

Rick's hands glided up her thighs, bunching the thick fabric from skirt of her dress. He was taken by surprise when his hands cupped her thick bottom and found no cotton material to distract him. He continued to squeeze and massage her until a thin spandex strap between her cheeks caught his fingers. He pulled back to look up at her quizzically, which she returned with a teasing smile. This woman was full of little surprises.

With her wrists resting on his shoulders, she seductively ground herself across his growing manhood. Her soft breasts slightly bouncing in his line of vision prevailed in entertaining him. He kissed her bare shoulder which spiraled into a bite, followed by licking and sucking, as if apologizing for the brief pain he inflicted. He continued that way up her throat. The warmth of his tongue compelled Michonne to briefly close her eyes and roll her head back, moaning from the feel of him underneath her. Little by little he could tell she was starting to get untamed and he craved to see her unravel. Her hips moved achingly slow, up and down against him, she was ready to go for a ride.

Rick lifted from the bench with Michonne situated around his waist and gently laid down in the grass. As one hand toyed with her thong he used the other to remove the bobby pins from her hair, her long locs gradually falling into a large curly mane.

They proceeded to remove one another's clothing until Rick was left with his pants around his ankles and Michonne's dress pooled around his waist. She attempted to reserve her chorus of pleasure to soft moans since making love in public was a new experience and she was skeptical to how much the people walking by could hear. Rick on the other hand, had no care in the world. He grunted loudly, his manhood continuing to be hugged by her wet walls.

Afterwards the lovers took their time in returning to their room, admiring their nest of peace and beauty within the garden. Tomorrow everyone would be leaving the Kingdom and they both knew they would not have much alone time with one another, tasked with giving their thanks and goodbyes to the king's staff, as well as their family and friends. So there they laid in the grass, finishing off an apple, gifting one another with soft caresses under the quiet midnight sky.

 **A/N: Was that Carol and Ezekiel sneaking off together?**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I'm just going to go ahead and apologize for the lack of Richonne in this chapter lol.**

 _Day 4_

Michonne rolled her shoulders back, feeling relaxed and well-rested seeing after sleeping in with Rick. She grabbed a few loose grapes from her husband's plate as he directed his attention toward Carol, whom came crouching up behind their chairs.

"Have either of you seen Daryl today?" Her bright eyes flickered back and forth between the two.

"No," Michonne shook her head with a tinge of worry.

"No, not yet. But Morgan told me he's hard to wake so it may be a while before we see him," said Rick.

Carol had already thought about that herself, but wasn't completely satisfied. "True, but Daryl never passes up a meal. I'll keep asking around."

Rick scrunched up his eyebrows. "What's up with her?"

"I'm not sure," she mumbled masking his sight from the stolen grapes in her mouth.

Catching on to her suspicious behavior, he asked, "Did you-"

"Nope."

"You liar, get your own grapes." He whined, tapping her knee from under the table.

"Yours are better," she added before grabbing a few more off his plate. "Oh, there goes Daryl." The two of them turned their attention towards the buffet line. "Where'd Carol go now?"

"Over there" he pointed to the corner of the other side of the dining hall. Carol was questioning a hungry Sasha, piling tons of bacon on her plate with a piece hanging out of her mouth.

"Here ye, Here ye!" the crowd of guests began to simmer down in the large hall as King Ezekiel took a stand at the center of the elevated stage. "I wanted to thank you all for joining me and my people here at the Kingdom for this joyous occasion. Not often do we get to convene in causes of happiness, so this has been a treat indeed."

Michonne divided her attention between listening to Ezekiel's closing words and her friend's silent hunt. The gray-haired woman spotted Daryl and began stalking towards him.

King Ezekiel continued on, "With that being said, I should also let you all know that I haven't quite been transparent about my reasoning for inviting you all here. Madame Peletier . . . please join me on stage." All eyes shifted to where she stood, mere feet away from Daryl. She froze with tension, briefly rolling back her eyes and sucking in her bottom lip. Turning on the ball of her foot, she gracefully floated up the short stairs to stand next to the king.

"What are you doing?" She whispered, through a closed grin.

Ezekiel whispered back through the same closed grin, "Darling we already discussed this. You knew I was going to tell our friends and family today."

Carol shifted her body so that her back was facing the crowd, blocking Ezekiel's face. "Uh yea, but not right now, in front of the whole Kingdom, Hilltop, and Alexandria. I haven't told, I haven't told the people closest to me."

"Carol you had two full days, you can't put that on me. It's time." The two looked back at their audience, everyone awaiting the King's next statement.

Ezekiel smiled. "As I was saying, I haven't been quite transparent to you all in the reason for being here. I am happy to announce that my dear Carol and I will be getting married in the fall." He grinned even wider and grabbed her delicate hand in his. Michonne nearly choked on her drink. The people of the kingdom clapped, seeming none too surprised in comparison to the Alexandrians and people of the Hilltop.

"Did you know about this?" Rick whispered in his wife's ear, unconsciously clapping with the others.

"Uh, obviously not," she said tipping back her glass of water. "I thought he had a thing for her but I had no idea they were in a whole relationship, nonetheless getting married."

"I guess it makes sense. I thought I saw them leaving the party together last night," said Rick.

"What? And you didn't tell me?"

"I wasn't sure if it was them. I just saw their silhouettes." Rick hunched his shoulders forward. "Plus, we were both pretty preoccupied last night." He added, giving her a knowing smirk.

Michonne shook her head. "Carol I can let slide, but you're telling me that without Shiva standing next to him you can't tell Ezekiel's silhouette from anyone else's?"

Rick slowly answered, "Yea." Her eyes rolled.

People began deserting the dining tables and swarmed around the stage to congratulate the couple, when all of a sudden Jerry burst in through the Great Hall's heavy doors. He was panting, yet waddling and maneuvering his way through the sea of people. His short, chubby legs pounded up the steps of the stage and he whispered into the king's ear.

"What?" Ezekiel's face scowled in disbelief. Jerry brought his cuffed hand back to Ezekiel's ear to continue, causing Ezekiel to suck his teeth and sigh.

Jerry brought the buzzing room to attention again by announcing "All council members, please meet the King in the West Hall meeting room immediately."

"This can't be good," Rick said, turning to grab his wife's hand.

* * *

The rest of the party was excused home, yet some were puzzled when offered different vehicles to leave in than the ones they initially rode in to the Kingdom. Sasha, Abraham, Glenn, Maggie, Daryl, Morgan, Michonne, Rick, Ezekiel, and Carol piled into the room as Jerry went into detail about what happened.

"I went out this morning to relieve Ben of his shift and I couldn't find him anywhere. I even had Morgan help scan the perimeter outside of the gate and there was no one in sight. His shift started around 4 am so there's no telling how long he's been gone, but I'm sure he's not within the walls. With all the guests here, someone would've seen him sir."

The group waited for Ezekiel's plan of action anxiously around the small meeting room. Ezekiel massaged his forehead. "I hate to prolong all of your stay, but I am in need of your help. We must send out a search party, yet I can't send out all of my men. I need people to stay back and protect the Kingdom against whatever threat is out there."

Rick leaned against a nearby wall and said, "Whatever you need, you've got it. The Kingdom has always been at our side, so we're not going to abandon you now." The room of people nodded their heads in agreeance. "Myself, Morgan, and Daryl, we'll come on the search with you. Abraham and Glenn can cover gate duty with your guys, and Maggie, Carol, Sasha, and Michonne can be on stand-by inside until we get back."

Ezekiel had an uneasy frown. "Uh, not to intrude, but is it in our best interest to have Sasha in harm's way with a young life growing inside her?"

Before Abraham could rebut, Sasha confidently quirked an eyebrow, "Oh trust me, this belly has no effect on my sniping skills. I'm good." The red head smiled proudly, rubbing his girlfriend's back.

Ezekiel nodded. "Well then I guess we're set. Men, if you could come with me. Jerry will lead us to the armory and we'll grab some things for the search. Ladies, you can sit tight here. We'll bring the weapons to you." Ezekiel gently squeezed Carol's hand, rubbing circles into it. With a tender touch, he held her jaw and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Although upset earlier, she could barely hide the blush that fell upon her face. Everyone in the room saw it, even Daryl who looked away, focusing on a loose thread in the carpet.

The other men followed, giving their women a brief farewell. Rick reached behind him to give Michonne a peck on the lips. Her eyes were full of certainty, confident in her man's ability to get the job done. Rick smoothed his hand down her locs, "If we're not back by daybreak, send out another group. Follow our tracks." Michonne nodded, and gave him another peck, their foreheads resting upon one another as if silently communicating their love, and then Rick left, falling in step with Ezekiel, and the rest of the men filing out behind them.

"I just want you to know, you two make me sick." Carol giggled.

"Oh no Carol, you are not getting out of this one my friend," Sasha beamed. The women began to close in on Carol.

"Right, you've been holding out. You're getting hitched?" Maggie exclaimed.

"Oh my goodness," Carol sighed.

"I'm curious as to when this all began." Michonne prompted.

Carol leaned on the long desk behind her, "I feel like I have no choice but to tell you since we'll be stuck together for God knows how long."

* * *

"Sir, here are the footprints I told you about. It has to be whoever took Ben because they immediately stop in front of the car that was here. You can see the tire marks curving down the lot."

Daryl crouched down to investigate the tracks. "Whoever did this were amateurs. Their tracks are everywhere. I see three people's tracks but there may be more. How much gas was in that car?"

Jerry answered, "We ration out gas for all the cars, so no more than a fourth of a tank."

Rick held his thumb upon his gun belt and nodded. "Good, they couldn't have gotten too far without having to stop for more."

Ezekiel felt slightly better. "Jerry, bring around the horses, it'll be easier to track these people. If we track them and see that they're too far ahead we'll turn back and get the van."

Daryl's mind was split between their current task and his past conversations with Carol. How could he have not seen the signs? Once Daryl found her at the Kingdom a couple years ago, she easily would have been welcomed back into Alexandria but she wished to stay where she was. He had chalked it up to new beginnings and possible persuasion by their large assortment of food, yet this whole time it was a man keeping her away. Not just any man, a leader, meanwhile he was off being held as some prisoner for Negan's bargain.

He should have known something was awry when Carol began mentioning him as "King Ezekiel", no one called him that except for his people. What did she see in him anyway? Okay, yea he was good looking. But Daryl figured he had at least a good ten pounds of muscle on Ezekiel. Yes, he was charismatic, funny, and smart. 'Damn, maybe _I_ should be marrying him," Daryl thought to himself. He fought to hide the jealousy that consumed him as he glared at the back of Ezekiel's head. His musing was interrupted once the man in question handed him the reins of a chestnut mare.

Rick, Morgan, and Ezekiel were already atop their horses when the latter called down to the loyal assistant, "Jerry, man the gates with Abraham and Glenn and make sure that our people stay within the grounds today. Do not let anyone outside the gates. If anyone asks, tell them it was ordered by me, but whatever you do, do not tell them Ben is missing. I don't need the people of the Kingdom going into a frenzy."

"You got it sir," said Jerry.

"Oh, and feed my princess Shiva for me, please."

"No problem-o." Jerry nodded before jogging back towards the main gates, and closing them behind himself.

"Trust me, things did not happen overnight," said Carol. She had drifted to a nearby plush chair in order to get comfortable while filling in the women.

Maggie smirked, "Oh I bet. When you first got to the Kingdom you couldn't stand Ezekiel."

"Exactly, it was all too much. I picked up on his little act very quickly and I tried to avoid him at all costs. He would stop by to bring me fresh-picked fruit, the finest jewelry, clothes, you name it. In true kingdom fashion, I banished him from my property, but then he would send Ben to go spy on me anyway. Ben is young and naïve, he'll do anything for King Ezekiel's approval, even if it means pissing me off." Carol paused, cringing at the fact that she couldn't stop calling him king. It wasn't a bad thing, she knew the day she started calling him 'king' was the day she started to respect him, and respect was what was needed for any of this to work. On the flip side, it was a tell-tale sign to her family that she liked him way more than she would like to publically admit. She was far from embarrassed of him, she wanted the timing to be right.

"So if he wasn't allowed to see you anymore, how did you two start dating?" Maggie asked.

"I was set up," Carol said matter-of-factly.

Sasha responded, "I find this hard to believe Carol. You can see through camel shit."

"Oh honey." Maggie cringed.

Michonne chuckled, looking over to the pregnant woman. "Sasha, you've been around Abraham too long."

"I know, it's bad," Sasha wailed. "But as you were saying Carol."

"When I first came to the Kingdom, Ezekiel saw me taking down walkers so he knew I could fight and protect myself. Therefore, Ben and Jerry-"

"Oh my God, Ben & Jerry's sounds really good right now," Sasha whispered as she rubbed her full belly.

Carol quickly pursed her lips before continuing, "Ben and Jerry told me that a small herd of walkers had gotten into the garden and that they needed my help redirecting them. The three of us were running through the courtyard. Luckily it was evening so most people were already in their rooms because I'm sure I made a fool of myself, running around with this large knife. Jerry led us to the giant fountain in the center of the garden and there were no walkers in sight. I turned around to ask them both what the hell was going on and Ezekiel comes out of the bushes singing-"

"-wait, the man sings?" Michonne questioned. "Carol this man is a catch. Rick loves to sing but he sounds like a dying cat."

"I know, I heard him croaking before the sun came up yesterday," Carol giggled. "Michonne, what are you doing to that man?" Michonne blushed, knowing that Rick only sang on two occasions, when he was trying to get some or right after he already got some. "But yes, once he was singing I knew it was a trap. I got up to leave, and Jerry was behind me with a ukulele and Ben's snapping, so it was obvious they had worked hard on this, I was at least going to let the man finish his song."

Sasha teased, "Mhmm, we know why you gave him a chance Carol. Did he have on those tight green pants he loves to wear?"

"Sasha!" Maggie couldn't contain her laughter.

"I'm just saying, we've all noticed," Sasha added before snickering with Maggie and Michonne.

"You all are horrible." Carol laughed heartedly. "Anyway he's singing and the fountain lights up, he has a couple daisies in his hand, and he asks me to _allow_ him to take me on a date. I was honestly sold once he mentioned steak and wine."

Maggie gasped and lightly slapped her on the knee, "Using that poor man for his food."

"Hey, he's the one that offered. Might as well get something out of it for me," Carol giggled. "He was so eager, we ended up on our date the next day. The kids were putting on a play for the whole community and I was his guest of honor. At the end of the show he even got on the stage to sing with the kids and joke around. The kids love him and think he is just hilarious." The corner of her lip perked up, her eyes glossing over in memory. "That's what I love most about him. I'm obviously done having kids, but I know in my heart Sophia would've loved him. Hell, he makes me feel like a child. We're always laughing and having fun together. He's so different than anything I've ever experienced before." Michonne held back the tears that were springing into her eyes, while Maggie and Sasha gushed.

"Carol, that is wonderful. We are so happy for you," Maggie said.

Michonne had to ask, "You're obviously in love with this man, so why were you trying to hide it? It seems like the people of the Kingdom already knew about your relationship with Ezekiel."

"They do. I've only been acting strange because Daryl's here and I hadn't talked to him about it yet. I tried this morning but Ezekiel beat me to it with the whole big announcement." Carol rolled her eyes.

"Oh, that's why you were looking for him this morning," said Maggie before pouting. "Yeah, he looked kind of bummed."

Carol nodded. "I wouldn't expect anything less. I need him to know he's still an important person in my life, but I also want him to be okay with Ezekiel because he's not going anywhere anytime soon. I hope they're able to get along on this excursion. Ezekiel cares so much about this community, and loves the people. He'd do anything to protect each and every one of them. He's worried. Ben is like a son to him, so he's trying not to freak out, but I know he's worried."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I plan to start updating this faster. This is my first sorta action fic so I've honestly been a bit intimated but we're rocking and rolling. Enjoy!**

Rick, Morgan, and Ezekiel stayed near the front, atop their horses, discussing possible locations the thieves could have traveled off to. Now that Alexandria, Hilltop, and the Kingdom were in communication there was not a lot of unchartered area between the three communities, their inhabitants had already scavenged and cleared it. Daryl hung back a few feet ruminating over the surprising news of his dear friends' impending marriage.

"Wait a second." The trio halted and turned their horses towards Daryl as he hopped down to inspect a pile of brown objects sitting at the roots of a nearby tree.

"Pinecones?" Ezekiel questioned.

"Nah, there's not a pine tree in sight for another thousand miles, these are peach pits." Daryl picked up one of the brawny objects and prodded it with his tongue for confirmation. "Yup, definitely from a peach."

The men began to dismount their horses, intrigued at the way Daryl began intensely examining the tree, squinting as he looked far up it. "Some of the branches are snapped. Like someone tried to climb it."

"How do we know it wasn't an animal?" Ezekiel asked, now looking at the branches too.

Daryl rubbed at the tree's trunk. "See how the bark's been trudged off, like shoes slipping. An animal would've left claw marks instead."

Ezekiel nodded slowly. "Rick you weren't lying, the man is good." Daryl took the compliment with a grunt.

"I guarantee it was one of those thieves hiding out, up in this tree. Possibly scoping out the next community to hit up. Could be headed towards Alexandria." Rick scowled.

"They had to have ran out of gas. The car shouldn't be too far off the road." Morgan added.

Rick began strategizing. "Morgan, you and I will go up the road, see if we can spot the car. Ezekiel, Daryl, stay near the area but see what you can find. More food, tracks, footprints, anything."

"Crap." Daryl let escape from under his breath.

The tall grass that covered the dense woods began to shorten as Rick and Morgan drew nearer to the main road. As soon as they cleared the last line of trees, they were immediately able to spot the stolen vehicle a couple miles ahead, erratically parked in the middle of the road.

They moved with urgency, aware that every minute was crucial in catching up to the crooks. Whoever stole the car was dumb enough to leave the car unlocked with the key thrown in the passenger seat, which was another indication to Rick that this was a rookie job. Morgan put the key in the engine and the car would not start. He pulled the key back out of the ignition and turned to Rick, "Completely out of gas, like we suspected."

All of a sudden the cocking of a gun could be heard. Before Rick could fully turn around he had a pistol pointed at his head. A woman's voice with a strong accent demanded, "You surrender, now."

Rick and Morgan turned to face the pair of women, each pointing a gun at both of them. The one that spoke looked oddly familiar but Rick could not completely confirm that he had met this woman before. She looked and sounded like that trash queen Jadis, same awful mop haircut, pungent smell, and horrible grammar, yet this girl was young. She could not have been a day over twenty-five.

Besides, Rick knew he would not have to put up with Jadis ever again after Michonne took her head off her shoulders with her katana in one clean swipe a few years back. It was one of his proudest moments. He was so turned on after that they had ended up volunteering to stay behind their group to scavenge the junkyard for resources, or at least that was the excuse they gave while the rest of the group headed back to Alexandria. In actuality, Rick had taken Michonne behind some tree in the woods nearby and began ripping off her clothes.

"Get on knees. Not so smart Rick Grimes. Thought this harder. Aunt happy," the young woman smirked.

Rick snarled, irritated by the clipped voice of the young woman, and then it dawned on him. "Jadis is your aunt?"

* * *

"How long you think it'll be?" Sasha asked, passing Michonne in the long hallway, her rifle in its comfortable position, slung over her shoulder.

"I don't know. Hopefully not too long. I miss my little Judith. I hope she doesn't give Father Gabriel too much trouble." Michonne was surprised that Father Gabriel continued to volunteer to watch Judith, even knowing that the young girl had a healthy heap of questions for him to answer about life. She would never forget the day he showed up to her front door, red and frazzled, whispering to her that Judith had asked him how Sasha and Abraham got a baby, and wanted to know how she could get one for her mom and dad.

Sasha giggled, "You know the first thing she's going to ask is what did you bring her back."

Michonne scoffed, "Rick has her spoiled."

"Uh, you do too missy. Aren't you the one that had Jesus set up a mini petting zoo for her third birthday?"

"Okay, it's not like that was a hard task. The animals were already there, all he had to do was corral the babies together and give us some hay," Michonne argued.

Sasha's stomach jumped as she laughed, "Michonne, you are just as bad as Rick."

"Yea, well you'll know just how it feels once this little princess gets here." Michonne said, lightly touching her friend's full belly.

Sasha rubbed her stomach thoroughly, "Couple more months. I'm excited."

"We all are. It's good to see our communities growing." The corner of her mouth lifted up with contentment.

"I'm surprised you newlyweds haven't got started yet." Sasha bumped her on the shoulder. "By the sounds I heard outside your door the other morning, I can guess that you guys have certainly been practicing."

"Oh trust me, he's been trying to get me pregnant at every turn, but I had to convince him to chill out. We finished this war with the Saviors but I wasn't sure if we would have another moment of peace." The pair commenced ambling down the secluded hallway.

"I totally get it. So now that it has been fairly quiet?" Sasha eagerly wanted to know how Michonne felt about expanding her family unit.

"Rick is on top of it. I'm honestly surprised he let me out of the room this weekend." She rolled her eyes.

"I thought he was like that because you guys were on a mini-vacation away from the kids. I know Carl was here, but I mean, he's an adult."

"No, Rick is like this at home. It sounds silly to complain, but I can barely get any work done. I don't even know why I bother to get dressed in the morning anymore. Even if I do make it out of the house, he finds me and wants to have sex in the oddest places."

"Like where?"

"A couple of days before we left, Father Gabriel had a community dinner at the church,"

"Uh huh."

"It was a nice event. We had to dress up and I wore this black dress, and Rick kept rubbing on my legs whispering to me at the table how he rarely gets to see them. One thing turned into another and we might have ended up naked in Gabriel's office."

Sasha spun towards her and gasped. "Michonne you had your skirt hiked up in the house of the lord?"

"You know Rick," she shrugged nonchalantly, "church is nothing but four walls and a roof to him."

Highly amused, Sasha just shook her head. "Y'all are so bad."

* * *

Ezekiel lifted his knees high above his waist as he and Daryl trampled through the thick wild grass that grew around the trees. He turned to the focused hunter and started, "You know Daryl we could really use someone with your skill at the Kingdom. My knights, although they have the best intentions, are very young and inexperienced. I'm lucky to have you all from Alexandria here, or else I don't think we would've come anywhere close to finding Ben this soon."

Daryl grunted and shrugged his shoulders, only giving Ezekiel half his attention as he finished scouring the area around them a final time.

Ezekiel startled Daryl, his voice changing considerably from the haughty position he was used to. "Daryl, I know- I know, you and Carol are close. She's talked about you a lot since she's gotten here."

"She has," Daryl questioned, yet was quick to change his disposition once he heard the high pitch escape his throat. He cleared the uncertainty from his voice and continued, "I mean, yea we've known each other a long time."

"Stay at the Kingdom. We could really use your help." Ezekiel stopped clear in front of Daryl to indicate his sincerity, "And Carol would love to have a piece of her home with her."

Daryl lifted an eyebrow. "Did she put you up to this?"

"Not at all, but I think it'd be a good idea. Forgive me for overstepping, but I don't think you have much holding you to Alexandria."

Daryl took a moment to think for himself. It was true. Although, he loved his family in Alexandria, they were beginning to branch off and begin their own families. Rick and Michonne were newly married, Abraham and Sasha had one on the way, Maggie and Glenn already had two kids and Daryl had . . . Daryl. Finding a match in Alexandria was damn near impossible with everyone already paired off, and the women living there morphing into his extended family. Maybe Ezekiel was right, a new environment could be good. He had strayed away from any human connections for a while but seeing his closest friends opening up their lives made him want to create meaning for his own life.

But did he really want to see Carol gallivanting around with Ezekiel? It's not that he would be jealous, Carol was like an older sister to him. But he knew, at the mere chance that their relationship turned sour, that Daryl would put a crossbow through his head. Probably not the smartest idea, to kill the beloved leader of a community, but he knew he would stop at nothing to ensure Carol's happiness.

"Not so fast, wild one and tiger man." Two women jumped from the bushes.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Daryl said, quickly raising his crossbow to his shoulder. Just then two more odd women came out from behind the large trees, with Rick and Morgan at gunpoint.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: It's been 84 years since the last update lol**

"Where's Ben? If you at least aren't going to tell us where you're taking us you can at least tell me where you have my knight Ben."

"Young scrawny kid?"

"Well yes, have you kidnapped more than one person in the past week or something?" Ezekiel asked.

"Mmm, not this week. He not far. Will exchange him at Alexandria. Maybe keep as pet."

"You don't want to go to Alexandria, you need young strong men. All the men there are forty years old at minimum." Rick bargained, his hands tied behind his back with his three partners trailing behind him. Each escorted by a member of this bizarre clan.

The woman with the bowl-cut scoffed, "Us women strong. Want older, wise men. Like you two, that wild, squirrel-eating one, tiger man. We hear Alexandria has scientist. Fat, bad hair, likes pickles."

"Eugene?" Daryl questioned in bewilderment.

"Yes. Perfect for smart offspring."

Rick hassled. "Well everyone is still at the Kingdom, we should go back. No one's at Alexandria." He had to lie. He knew that his kids were home and he did not want to bring danger near, especially when they had people at the Kingdom, ready to fight.

The ringleader lifted her eyebrow, considering his words. "Hmm, ok. See. You perfect for us. Smart." She looked over to the other women, "We rest overnight, eat, make plan." Rick sighed, knowing Michonne was going to murder everyone, him included for worrying her.

"Oh, Tori bring me Ben. He useless to us. Too young."

* * *

"Glenn, I don't like this. The sun is going down and they're not back yet." Michonne itched with worry, her thumb running up and down the covered handle of her katana on her back.

"We've still got some time. Rick said not to send anyone out for them until daybreak. We possibly won't have to, but in the case that we have to, I know you're going."

"Carol's already prepared to leave with me in the morning. You okay with holding down the fort? Well, kingdom, in this case"

"Of course, and Carol, once we're all together again we should really discuss a strategy for training the people here. You guys have too many valuable resources to not know how to properly protect them."

"I completely agree, no more babying them. I've been trying to convince Ezekiel for awhile now, but I'm sure this incident will light a fire under him."

* * *

As the sun went down the forged group sat in the circle, the women standing above them discussing how they were going to capture the other men. It was a loose plan, especially with there only being four of them and basically having to herd them and their suspected victims together. They were easily going to be overpowered, armed or not. Michonne and the rest of the group were more than ready on standby at the Kingdom.

One of the minions took a considerable amount of food out of her backpack for everyone to eat.

Ezekiel had come across groups of vandals before but his kind heart was always curious of their motivation. The irony of being fed his own fruit while held captive was almost more than he could handle. He turned to the leader since she was the only one that seemed to speak and inquired, "Why are you ladies doing this? I know you talked about uh, reproductive purposes, but you all are intelligent, good-looking young women . . ." Morgan chose a bad time to choke on air. Ezekiel continued, "couldn't you have tried the traditional route first? Needless to say this is an apocalypse; however I've found that in courting my dear Carol that-"

"He talk this much always?" She turned to one of her helpers and instructed her, "Put sock in mouth."

"He does have a point though." Morgan chipped in. "Why do you have to capture men against their will?"

"My aunt would have. We no kill. Take what we need and go." She shrugged, feeling the judgement rolling off of the men's eyes in waves.

Daryl paused his ravenous eating of the fruit. "So wait, you're telling me you're just going to _use_ us and throw us back where we came from?"

"Yes."

Daryl dropped the remainder of the watermelon on the ground, losing his appetite altogether.

"That's sick."

"Not sick, smart."

"No, that's rape. You people are sick."

While they were speaking, Rick was thinking, if only he could reach the hunting knife inside his jacket pocket. The women may not have been the best strategists but they sure knew how to tie a knot. His plan was thwarted once Daryl struggled to his feet and began knocking down the woman next to him. Morgan and Ezekiel immediately followed Rick, jumping up to take care of the women the best they could with only the full use of their legs.

Morgan quickly went to trip the woman closest to him and was shocked when she counterbalanced him and sent him flying to the ground. Ezekiel reached down to try and help Morgan and was abruptly knocked down to the ground. Rick struggled to put up a fight but buckled over once the ringleader jabbed him in the ribs with a gun. Daryl was grabbed by the neck and slammed down to the ground. Ben watched on with wide eyes, too afraid to do anything.

"I told you we no kill, but I will hurt. Don't make this difficult. You all sleep on ground tonight. Tied to trees. Tie them up Tori."

* * *

 _Day 5_

The sun was just coming up as Michonne rummaged through the armory, ensuring she had ample amounts of ammo, before she pulled the large sack closed. She opened the clip of the handgun, checking for bullets before loading it back into the chamber.

Glenn suggested Michonne get some sleep that night, however she laid in bed and her eyes would not close, not even for a minute. She was too busy hypothesizing where Rick and the guys could have ended up and what could have happened to them. Carol hastily entered the room, breathing heavy as if she ran on the way over.

"Change of plans, they're back." Carol said.

"What," Michonne scrambled to put her katana on her back and fled from the armory, Carol struggled to keep up. "Where are they? Are they ok?" Michonne briefly turned back to ask, her legs still carrying her forward.

"They're all back in the Great Hall. None of them were hurt, and they have Ben."

"Thank goodness," Michonne said under her breath.

She burst through the doors of the echoey hall. She quickly registered everyone else in the room, yet her eyes focused in on her husband. He walked towards her, cognizant that she would be on edge with his late arrival. Michonne moved forward and closed the distance between them. Her eyes scanned his body searching for bruises, scratches, or bites.

"What took you so long?" The worry apparent in her voice.

"We got caught up," he avoided her eye contact, embarrassed by the fact that they were nearly captured by teenagers. "It's a long story. Let me set up a time to meet back up with everyone and I'll fill you in."

She quietly nodded, her heart's pace slowing to its original beat. She kept her eyes on him as he walked back over to the group.

* * *

"Jadis has family?" Michonne asked in annoyance. She leaned over the back of the intricately carved wooden chair that sat in the corner of her and Rick's temporary bedroom.

"Yea," Rick sighed, removing his watch in order to prepare for a shower.

"How unfortunate," she mumbled. "So they let you guys go, but where are they now?"

"Not exactly sure, but they're not far. They were smart enough to know not to walk back on the Kingdom's grounds, but they're watching us. I talked the leader into sending us back here. She thinks we're going to relay the message that they plan to take back more men with them. And get this, she specifically asked for Eugene." Rick sneered while pulling his belt through his pant loops and onto the floor.

Michonne studied him as he continued undressing. She knew her timing was horrible, but she really missed him, and Rick all dirty and roughed up reminded her of when they first met. "She's got to be delusional if she thinks you all are going to follow them without a fight."

"Well that's the thing. Her plans are sloppy, and she may not be the smartest, but her group can fight. We learned that the hard way." Rick rubbed at sore ribs as he pulled his shirt tail away from his pants, and over his head.

"Combat has never been an issue for me. Sounds like you couldn't keep up old man," she smirked, Rick caught the glimmer of arousal dancing in her eyes.

"You've never had complaints about this old man before," he flirted, his pants dropping to the floor. "I can keep up with you just fine." His hands traveled down into his boxers, grabbing his crotch. The look he was giving his wife was destructive, she knew it was only a matter of time.

Michonne gripped the seat a little tighter, wanting to focus on the serious threat at hand, but she was no match for her husband's flirtations. "Are you sure?" She looked at the giant clock on the wall. "How much time do we have?"

"Twenty minutes."


End file.
